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Gomez Staying Afloat

Charles Gardner at the Journal-Sentinel keys in on something I’ve noticed lately: Gomez seems to be improving at the plate.

Gomez went 3-5 with a walk in last night’s 14-run offensive onslaught. One of the hits was a three-run shot that Gomez drilled into center field. The day left Gomez with a batting average of .225, up from .194 as of April 13.

Since the start of the Washington road trip, Gomez is batting .258 with three walks and only seven strikeouts. That kind of line won’t exactly inspire fear in the hearts of opposing pitchers, but is important because with Nyjer Morgan on the DL, the Brewers really have no other options in center.

What’s most important, though, is that Gomez is finally exercising some plate patience. He declined to swing at everything near the zone yesterday, and the results were spectacular. My sense after watching him the past week or two is that he’s working the count and seeing more pitches. Although I have not looked at the stats to verify that, the results kind of speak for themselves.

I have mentioned in the past that I think Gomez has something to offer this team even if he loses the starting job in center field. If he continues swinging the bat well, he might hold on to the job longer than many Brewer fans would like. I think if Gomez could find a way to reach safely 1-2 times per game, everyone would be happy. Probably no one more than Ryan Braun.